Prayer for the Day

by Revd Canon David White

24th May 2026 - Pentecost

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will
does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road,
though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore, I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost
and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. Amen.

This Prayer of Trust by Thomas Merton is a favourite of mine. It is a powerful reflection on surrendering to God’s will, especially in times of uncertainty. Merton, a Trappist monk and spiritual writer, expresses the honest struggle many people feel when they cannot see the path ahead. Rather than relying on clarity or control, the prayer teaches that true faith is rooted in trust, trust that God is guiding us even when we feel lost. The prayer resonates with the message of Psalm 23, where God is described as a shepherd who leads his people even through the “valley of the shadow of death”. It reminds us that the desire to seek God and follow his will is itself pleasing to him, even when we fall short or lack direction.

On this Sunday when we remember the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the first disciples, it also encourages a quiet confidence that God the Holy Spirit is present, faithful, and always leading us toward what is good, even when we cannot yet understand his plan.